Case: ArcelorMittal 2007

THE STORY

In June 2006, family-controlled Mittal Steel acquired Arcelor (itself the 2002 merger of Arbed, Aceralia and Usinor), to become the world's leading steel company... working name, Arcelor Mittal. FutureBrand won the rebranding assignment.

Rebranding goals, as expressed in planning and launch materials were "to meld the two cultures," instill an attitude of energy, and express a commitment to global steel industry leadership.

The two heritage names were combined to form a new word, and a symbol-based logo (barely recognisable as an A monogram, or is it an M?) helped express unity and energy. The wordmark's rounded sans-serif typeface provides the basis of the typographic system. There is a color palette, and a graphic device called the ArcelorMittal Shape, a system of notched corners to help organize and differentiate communications.

Arcelor's Luxembourg HQ location was retained for ArcelorMittal, rather than Mittal Steel's Rotterdam location, in part to avoid the impression of an Indian takeover.

A dramatically staged launch event was the culmination of a long and thorough Web-based campaign to ease the "melding" process, and prepare employees to live the new brand. A new tag line, "Transfoming Tomorrow," seems more a challenge to employees than a promise to customers.